Finding Serafin
by quibble
Summary: It's been two months since Serafin died, and Merle can't stop thinking about him. Would Sekkmet help bring him back, and would it be a wise choice overall?


**What's up? This story takes place after the Glass Word, the 3rd book in the Dark Reflections Trilogy. I don't think a ton of people have read this series, so I did a lot of summarizing. There was way too much to explain if you haven't read the books, so just pm me if you have a question or something. Oh, and the entire story takes place about 200 years ago, if that helps you picture it.****  
****Peace!! ~quibble  
**

Merle stared into the canal, dangling her legs so that they were a few inches above the water. People walked by her, but she paid no attention to them. She was too immersed in her own thoughts.

She didn't move until a hand tapped her lightly on the shoulder. She looked up into the thin face of her friend Junipa. "Ready to go?" Junipa asked. Merle nodded, then got to her feet. She glanced around. Venice was a changed place from the one she had grown up in. Just over two months ago, the city had been controlled by mummy soldiers and the priests of the Pharaoh.

The Egyptians had conquered most of the world within thirty years. The only thing that had protected Venice was the presence of the Flowing Queen. Then, over several series of events that had changed Merle's life forever, she had been forced to share her mind and body with the Flowing Queen. Together they set off on a journey to stop the Pharaoh's seige and put an end to the war. But in order to stop the enemy, the Queen had needed her own body back. Merel would have died in the process if Serafin hadn't sacrificed himself to- no, she wouldn't think about that. It hurt too much to think about Serafin now.

With an effort, Merle brought herself back to the present. The past had passed. Venice was a happy place now. The canals had been cleaned and the mermaid races banned. After their helpful roles in ending the war had been realized, the mermaids could swim freely wherever they wanted. Travelers had immigrated into the city, filling the once gloomy and deserted buildings lining the canals, After thirty years of fear, Venice was basking in peacefulness.

Merle and Junipa strolled down the streets. They had just visited the village market in the center of Venice, stocking up on food and supplies. Now they were heading to the old Canal of the Expelled, where the workshop of their their old master Arcimboldo was. The dead mirrormaker's shop had been burned down, but the two girls wanted to visit before they reentered the mirror world.

They reached the sight within ten minutes. They wandered among the ashes, remembering the days they had spent here as apprentices. They found remains of their old bedroom, and even a bottle that has held Arcimboldo's imported red wine. Merle stared across the canal as Junipa walked around. The building opposite of them was the old workshop of Umberto the weaver, Arcimboldo's archenemy. Serafin had been an apprentice there....

"You're thinking about him again. I can tell." Junipa had walked up beside her. Her cold mirror eyes were unfeeling in Junipa's caring face.

"It doesn't feel like it's been two months, that's all." Merle replied, turning away. She didn't feel like discussing Serafin right now. "Come on. We should get moving. She turned her back on both workshops, and Junipa followed her.

They moved along the alleys and streets quickly, both knowing the outline of the city well. They reached a large building, right smack in the middle of the center square. The girls entered without hesitation. Inside, there were several boys wandering around, reading books and practicing fighting. "Is Lalapeya here?" Merle asked.

"She just got back," the boy answered. Merle thanked him, then lead Junipa through a door on the right. Inside was warm, hot like the desert, with hundreds of yards of sndy curtains hanging from the ceiling. In the middle of the vast room was a woman with the lower body of a lion. A sphinx. Merle's mother. Merle ran toward Lalapeya and hugged her. Merle had spent most of her fourteen years thinking she was an orphan. Then she had found her mother, and discovered that she wasn't even human. She wasn't even half human either. Her adventures had revealed that her father was half human, half demon. His father was the devil. Literally. Merle wasn't even sure what she was herself, only that she looked and felt human.

Merle looked up into her mother's face. "We came only for a few minutes," she said reluctantly. She loved her mother, but Merle and Junipa lived in different world now, and Lalapeya had her own list of duties. Besides, their relationship was still awkward. How did you act with the parent that hadn't seen you since you were born?

"I know" Lalapeya said. "we all have our own lives, don't we? Here, sit down while you stay." Merel and Junipa sat on cushions that littered the sand-covered floor. The three chatted for a while, catching up after two months apart. Lalapeya had been offered the post of a city counciller, and she had accepted it. She had much to do now, including housing a bunch of rowdy boys she had befriended before the end of the war.

Merle and Junipa had been wandering through the mirror world, searching for Merle's father and perhaps, another Venice. So far, they hadn't found either. They had discovered other things though, The mirror world had doors to places all over the world, and more. They had visited other countries, seeing how people were recovering from the war. The girls had even made soem phantom friends, spectors that didn't live in their world, but the world's reflection.

They had stopped only to restock on supplies, and visit Merle's mother. Junipa's heart had been replaced with a stone one that let Lord Light(the ruler of Hell) control her, and she had to fight it to keep her own free will. But when she stepped into a mirror, it was like she had her own beating heart again. Lord Light couln't reach her there.

Finally, the talking ended. It was time for them to leave. Lalapeya hugged both girls. "Remember, my mirrors are always open. You are welcome here." Merle and Junipa smiled at the sphinx. then walked over to a gold framed mirror. Junipa whispered a word to the smooth glass, and together the two girls walked through the mirror into a second world.

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**End of chapter one!!! Took me forever to type, I kept messing up-hoped you like it!!!!!!**

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